HVAC system for experimental research and educational applications

This paper describes an educational and experimental tool developed under LabVIEW environment at LASH/DGCB (France) laboratory of ENTPE. The objective of this tool is to make students sensitive with HVAC equipments, measurements, heat recovery, and regulation techniques in order to expand and test heating, cooling and ventilation control strategies. A large room of the Buildings Sciences Laboratory (LASH) is equipped with balanced mechanical ventilation and a global control/data acquisition system. To familiarize with ventilation heat recovery, a run-around coils system with Air-Fluid-Air exchange as well as heat exchangers performances of the two air-to-water heat pumps can be studied with duct temperature sensors. Moreover, the experiments conducted by students led them to identify optimal parameters for each developed control strategy, in order to reach a good thermal comfort, indoor air quality and stability of actuators at the least energy cost. A global control strategy for heating and cooling period (PID & fuzzy regulator), based on interior temperature has been implemented in winter, mid season, and summer conditions. A measurements campaign during an occupied period is shown with an overview of actuators behavior. This tool aims also at highlighting the key role of advanced control techniques to manage heating and cooling systems.